Disclosing Meaning Through Expectations: A Phenomenological and Relational Perspective

Abstract This conference poster presents the Relational Transformation of Expectations Theory (RTET), a phenomenological and relational theoretical framework that conceptualizes expectations as dynamic configurations emerging through the ongoing interaction between person, relation, and field. Drawing on phenomenology, Gestalt psychotherapy, attachment theory, and contemporary research on meaning-making, RTET moves beyond an exclusively individual or predictive understanding of expectations. Instead, it examines how expectations participate in the organization of lived experience, relational processes, emotional responses, and the emergence of future possibilities. At the centre of the theoretical framework is the Person–Relation–Field (PRF) Model, which describes human experience as emerging through the dynamic interaction of three inseparable dimensions: the person, the relational process, and the experiential field. Within this framework, expectations are understood as meaningful, relational, and potentially transformative dimensions of human experience. The poster also introduces the Relational Transformation Process of Expectations, conceptualized as a dynamic and cyclical movement involving needs, expectations, experience, meaning, choice, and transformation. The confirmation or frustration of expectations is examined not as an isolated determinant of emotional or relational outcomes, but as an experience whose significance emerges within a specific relational and phenomenological context. The theoretical and clinical implications of RTET are discussed in relation to psychotherapy, particularly regarding awareness, relational dialogue, meaning-making, and the transformation of rigid expectations toward more flexible, creative, and responsible ways of engaging with emerging possibilities. The presentation forms part of the ongoing RTET–RTES Research Program, which integrates theoretical development and empirical investigation of expectations and their relational transformation. Conference Presentation 3rd International Conference of the European Association of Phenomenology, Psychopathology and Psychotherapy (EAPPP). Athens, Greece | 2–3 October 2026. Scientific Recognition 3rd Poster Award. Research Programme RTET–RTES Research Program — Relational Transformation of Expectations Theory (RTET) and Relational Transformation of Expectations Scale (RTES). Author Nikolas Raptis — Psychologist (MSc), Gestalt Psychotherapist (MA), Independent Researcher. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-5761-7549